How Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal became cities split by class

November 6, 2014

Richard Florida

Urbanism

Taking the podium after winning Toronto’s recent mayoral election, John Tory acknowledged the challenges that face our city and how he planned to tackle them. “Torontonians want to see an end to the division that has paralyzed city hall in the last few years,” he said. “Tonight we begin the work of building One Toronto.”

His inclusive tone is a welcome change of tack after the corrosive behavior and attitudes that marked the Rob Ford era. Tory takes the reins of a city deeply divided. But these divides transcend the old city-suburb split which has defined Toronto and most major metros since the 1960s. That old divide was clear in first election of the mega-city in 1998 where the urban old city of Toronto was pitted against the surrounding suburbs, with the urban centre going all in for Barbara Hall and the suburbs throwing in for Mel Lastman.